This story is part of the series CriticsCorner

TV tonight: 'The Middle'

USA TODAY's Robert Bianco previews November 20th's TV lineup from the Critic's Corner, with a Thanksgiving episode of 'The Middle' and an 'American Idol' alum does a guest appearance on 'CSI.'
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Robert Bianco, USA TODAY
3:03 a.m. EST November 20, 2013

What's worth watching, and what might not be, in prime time on Wednesday.

Frankie's boss Dr. Goodwin (Jack McBrayer, second right) shows up unannounced for Thanksgiving dinner just as Axl tries to find a way to tell his parents he had to drop most of his classes to avoid flunking out of college his first semester.(Photo: Michael Ansell, ABC)

They're celebrating Thanksgiving on a very funny episode of this reliably excellent sitcom, as the family gathers for a chaotic dinner marked by shared secrets and unexpected guests (including 30 Rock's Jack McBrayer). The outing has more than its share of big laughs, but what separates this show from so many other current comedies are the little moments it gets right: The way Frankie has to stretch the dinner with each new arrival, or the way Mike leads Axl to the right conclusion without telling him what it is. The humor can be exaggerated, but there's something very real in the relationships and the way the family deals with economic hardships. If only other sitcoms would take note.

Anyone with an affection for the medium's greatest comedies should be happy to see who's guesting on Modern Family: Ann Guilbert, who played Millie on The Dick Van Dyke Show. Here she's Cam's grandmother, who shows up at the Tucker family farm just as Cam is bringing his male fiancé and their adopted Vietnamese daughter there for their first visit. No matter how thoroughly modern Millie was, odds are that's an encounter she never would have imagined.

CSI | CBS, 10 ET/PT

American Idol winner Jordin Sparks guests on CSI, and considering her career and the show's Vegas setting, you might expect her to be playing a singer. But no: She's a teacher caught up in a murder at a local motel.